Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina

Kill Devil Hills is a town in Dare County, North Carolina, United States. As of the 2020 census, it had a population of 7,633 people, making it the largest town in both Dare County and the Outer Banks area of North Carolina.

The town is famous because it was the place where the Wright brothers made their first successful, powered airplane flights on December 17, 1903. They chose this spot because of its strong, steady winds. A special memorial called the Wright Brothers National Memorial was built there in 1932 to honor their achievement.

At the time of the first flight, Kill Devil Hills wasn’t even a town yet. It became an official town in 1953. Nearby Kitty Hawk is often mentioned as the site of the first flight, even though it is about 4 miles north of where the actual flights took place.

History

Kill Devil Hills is famous for the Wright Brothers National Memorial, which honors the Wright brothers' first powered airplane flights in the Wright Flyer on December 17, 1903. Later, in 1911, Orville Wright came back and set a new world record for gliders, staying in the air for over 10 minutes.

The town also has Sam’s Diner, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1999.

Geography

Kill Devil Hills is a town in Dare County, North Carolina, located on the barrier islands known as the Outer Banks. According to the United States Census Bureau, the town covers a total area of 5.5 square miles, almost all of which is land with just a small portion being water.

The town has a humid subtropical climate, meaning it has hot, humid summers and cool winters. During summer, a cooling sea breeze often helps, though very hot and humid days can still occur. Kill Devil Hills is also at risk of hurricanes, especially from June through November.

Sports

Kill Devil Hills has a baseball team called the Outer Banks Daredevils. They play in the Tidewater Summer League, which is a league for college players during the summer. The Daredevils started in 1997 and began playing in Kill Devil Hills in 2005. Their home games are at the First Flight Baseball Complex on Veterans Drive.

Education

The town of Kill Devil Hills is part of the Dare County Schools system. Two schools, First Flight Elementary School and First Flight Middle School, are located in Kill Devil Hills, just south of a special memorial place called the Monument. High school students in Kill Devil Hills go to First Flight High School, which opened in 2004. Before that, they went to Manteo High School.

Some parts of Kill Devil Hills send students to Nags Head Elementary School instead of First Flight Elementary. The school zones changed when Nags Head Elementary opened in 2005. The Dare County Library also has a branch in Kill Devil Hills for everyone to use.

Transportation

First Flight Airport (IATA: FFA, ICAO: KFFA, FAA LID: FFA) is a public airport owned by the National Park Service and located just west of Kill Devil Hills. It covers 40 acres and has a single runway.

The airport was important for early flying experiments by the Wright brothers. It was also one of the stops for a special air tour in 2003.

Popular culture

Kill Devil Hills has appeared in several movies, music, and other forms of entertainment. The 1983 film Brainstorm ends at the Wright Brothers National Memorial visitor center in Kill Devil Hills. A famous monster truck named Grave Digger is connected to the town, and its name appears on the truck’s design. In 2005, Bruce Dickinson, the lead singer of the band Iron Maiden, released an album called Tyranny of Souls that includes a song named “Kill Devil Hill” about the first airplane flight. In 2011, musicians Rex Brown and Vinny Appice formed a band they called Kill Devil Hill.